Christian Horner reveals Bernie Ecclestone phone call after Max Verstappen win

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner revealed Bernie Ecclestone told him Max Verstappen’s drive at Interlagos was “one of the very best I’ve ever seen” over the weekend.

Verstappen rose from 17th on the grid to win the race in challenging conditions throughout on Sunday, in a performance that has been widely lauded by drivers and pundits alike – with former F1 supremo Ecclestone adding his name to the list via phone call with the Red Bull boss.

Christian Horner reveals Bernie Ecclestone call after Max Verstappen victory at Interlagos

Former F1 chief executive Ecclestone, who turned 94 last week, was present in Sao Paulo to watch what would become a thrilling race on Sunday.

Qualifying was delayed until Sunday morning after a downpour on Saturday meant qualifying was unsafe to run, but after being knocked out in Q2, coupled with a five-place grid penalty, Verstappen worked his way up through the field and, after a ‘free’ pit stop under red flag conditions, resumed the race in second place midway through proceedings.

He overtook Esteban Ocon for the lead by lap 40 and did not look back from there, opening up a 19-second lead by the time the chequered flag was waved to extend his World Championship lead to 62 points.

When asked after the race in Brazil if Verstappen can be considered the best driver Formula 1 has ever had, Horner revealed that he received a call from Ecclestone to say his drive on Sunday was right up there with what he had seen in the past.

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“I think, look, it’s difficult to make those calls about generation to generation,” Horner said.

“Bernie rang me after the race and said, ‘I’ve seen all the greats, but that’s one of the very best I’ve ever seen.’

“So he’s a bit older than I am, and seen a bit more, so high credit from someone like him.”

Verstappen made up six places on the first lap alone, which became seven when he moved past Lewis Hamilton at Turn 1 on the second lap – putting him in the points-paying positions shortly after starting the race almost at the very back of the field.

Much had been made of how Verstappen had defended against Lando Norris in the previous round in Mexico City, which earned him 20 seconds’ worth of time penalties – but Horner believed this response was one of Verstappen’s best performances to date.

“I think the best response is to do your talking on the track, and that’s what he’s done today,” Horner said.

“And as an attacking drive, to go from 17th to 1st, I think, is one of the best drives of his career.

“On a day where conditions are difficult, you see the differences in the drivers. Now, as a team, we’ve worked very hard to give him a strong car, and I think all credit to everybody back in Milton Keynes for producing a car that he was able to go and deliver that kind of result with. So, a big result.

“For the team, for Max, [it] was a perfect race.”

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